The Promise
by Wilwarren
Summary: A horrible promise. A love confession. An epic fight.  That's what this story is about. Go on and read it. Damon/Elena, set after The House Guest
1. The promise

_**Disclaimer: Sadly I do not own Vampire Diaries. What a shame.**_

_**Author's note: Hi everybody! This is my first try at a fanfiction in the Vampire Diaries world. I wrote this because the last episode (The house guest) pissed me off so much. Poor little Damon, everybody just keeps kicking into him. Stop that people! Doesn't he deserve a little love? Well, he will get it from me.**_

_**This is actually a one-shot, I post it in two parts because it elevates the drama… **_

_**Anyway, English is not my native language, so if there are any grammar mistakes and so that's because of that. Sorry.**_

_**If you enjoyed reading it please review! Pretty please!**_

_**Love,**_

_**Wil**_

_Here we were, at the endgame. Klaus, who really was__ the monster who we all expected, stood before me, waiting for me to answer his question. _

_The two Salvatore brothers were just a step behind my back, compelled not to move. I turned around taking my eyes from the oldest living vampire who wanted me to make the hardest decision of my life. I looked at Stefan first. He stared into my eyes directly, so sure of my answer. I could tell that he struggled; he knew what my choice would do to the other, and he was already sorry for his brother. My eyes moved to Damon. Poor, wrecked and torn Damon. He wasn't meeting my gaze. I couldn't see those beautiful eyes and that handsome face, because he turned down his head waiting for the verdict._

"_All right Ms. Gilbert, I gave you enough time. Please, announce your candidate now!" ordered Klaus in the same aristocratic manner as Elijah used to speak._

_I had the name in my mind, but I knew that it would break a heart if I say it out loud, so I hesitated. I knew I could save only one of them. Klaus made it clear that he only needed one vampire for the ritual, so one could leave free. He made it my duty to pick which one of them will live, and who will die with me._

_It was time for my declaration._

TWO DAYS EARLIER…

The boarding house seemed empty when I stepped in. Stefan missed school, so I came to check on him. I couldn't find him in his room, and the living room was also deserted. A little bolt of jealousy crossed my mind as I noticed, that Katherine was missing to, but I dismissed the thought immediately. They could be gone separately.

A groan, coming from the direction of the sofa told me, that I was not alone in the house. I inched closer, taking a stake out of my bag. I knew that it would be useless against Klaus but I was hoping that I could surprise any lesser vampire.

Well, there on the sofa laid a slightly lesser vampire than Klaus. He had one of Jonathan Gilbert's journal open and face-down on his chest and covered his eyes with his lower arm. An empty bottle of scotch stood on the table beside him. I lowered the stake, turned it around and poked him with the blunt end. The action earned me another irritated moan, but he didn't let down his arm.

"Damon, wake up!"

I poked him again, but this time he grabbed the stake with his free hand, snatched it from my fingers and tossed it into the remains of the fire. I shrieked partly because of his abrupt movement and partly because of a splinter found its way to my forefinger.

"Ouch!" I said as I got around the sofa. I shoved his feet off the arm of the furniture and sat down on it, sucking my finger. It seemed very trivial that in the shadow of the imminent death my greatest trouble was a little fragment of wood in my finger, but it irritated me more than a stake in the belly would. My trailed nerves magnified every little nuisance like it was the end of the world.

After a few minutes of unsuccessful attempts to take the damn thing out I let out a resigned sigh and took back my finger to my mouth.

"Do you need help with that?" I heard Damon's voice from beside me. I turned in his direction just to notice that he no longer covered his eyes, but he was looking at me with amusement, probably for minutes now. I just shook my head, signaling no.

"I'm better in that, you know," he said pointing to my lips around my bruised finger. I immediately pulled it out, which resulted in a silly popping sound. I blushed like hell when Damon laughed out loud.

"Let me," he reached for my hand while sitting up beside me a little closer than it was necessary, which made me a hundred times more unwilling to give him it. It would be too intimate and I was trying to avoid those moments with him.

"Come on, I will only use my hands, I promise," he assured me with an impish grin and already grabbed my hand before I could protest.

He started working on taking out the little bit of wood. He really used just his hands, but he used too much of them. I thought that fondling my wrist and gently tracing my palm was not crucial for the procedure, but I didn't complain, just pretended like I haven't noticed. It all started to become a little too sensual and I felt the need to say something that would ruin the moment.

"What was the occasion?" I nodded toward the empty bottle.

Damon looked up with a slight irritation that I didn't just shut up and enjoy the moment rather than questioning about topics he didn't want to talk about. I assumed he didn't want to talk about it because he just shrugged and looked down on my hand again.

"Hey, where's Stefan?" I asked because suddenly it came to my mind that I came here to find him. Damon slightly squeezed my hand at the mention of his brother which surprised me. He wasn't usually so jumpy because of Stefan. Something must have happened between them. And now Stefan is missing. That didn't sound good.

"Where's Stefan, Damon?" I asked with a little more worry in my voice and I jerked my hand out of his touch, which he noted with a disappointed sigh. The splinter wasn't in there; I haven't even noticed when it came out.

"Damon!" I continued to demand his answer on a high pitched voice.

"How should I know! Maybe they are out with Katherine and your mommy and daddy for a lunch," he snapped. He said those names with so much acid in his voice that was starting to feel too much, and that was coming from me, who hated all of them like hell. "They would make a nice little family!"

Katherine, Uncle John and Isobel together somewhere with Stefan? That sounded very unlikely and I was starting to feel that I was missing something here.

"What are you talking about?" I asked confused as he bolted up and started pacing around the room like a caged beast.

He halted just before me and I stood up too just to found myself inches from his face. It looked raged and pained at once. As I learned before a sad, angry and drunk Damon is not a life insurance. But I wasn't afraid of him. He would never hurt me and there was no one in sight to take out his anger on.

"Did you know that Parents-of-the-year went so protective over you they even made a deal with Katherine?" he hissed between his teeth.

"What kind of a deal?" I asked frightened, because anything that included those three people could not be good for me or the ones I love.

"Katherine stays to help with the big bad and they will spare one of us." he informed me with a straight face, but the slight crack in his voice, which not many people would notice, told me the additional information. She didn't choose him.

"The dagger?" I asked as the picture slowly started to come together in my mind.

He slowly nodded but waved his hand in resignation like he didn't care that the past love of his life trying to get him killed. But he couldn't fool me. His eyes sparkled with anger and suppressed hurt. The last and only time I saw him like that was the time when Rose died. He let me hug him then, but I had the feeling he wouldn't want that now. That wasn't enough. The only problem I didn't know what was the appropriate thing to say, so only a lame 'sorry' came out.

"For what? For Katherine wanting me dead?" he asked laughing mirthlessly. "A lot of people want me dead. I got used to it."

"But it's Katherine. Do you still…"

"I don't give a shit about that bitch," he interrupted me before I could finish my question. I sighed in relief. What was scary that that was not only because it would be bad if Katherine would still be able to manipulate him, but it somehow bothered me personally that he would love another women. With that covered I still didn't understand why he was pissed so much. It wasn't unexpected from Katherine to play these kind of games, and if he doesn't care about her love anymore then all these tantrum seemed a little too much fuss about nothing.

"You know what hurts me," he asked in a conversational manner. The crazy thing about Damon was you could never know what he really thought. He could threaten you with a torturous death and compliment you with the same tone and both sounded believable. So when he said that he would willingly admit that something reached his heart so that it hurt him I was more than eager to listen. It would be a first time, and I was trying to make him make a confession like that for ages.

His eyes got softer and he was looking into mine directly. From the corner of my eye I saw that he lifted his hand to reach my face but dropped his hand halfway like he changed his mind. I would have let him do that. I know that whatever he was going to say he would mean it.

"You want me dead too," he said with sorrowful confidence, which made my heart sink.

"No, Damon, I don't!" I protested in a hurry. I hated that he thought I would want him gone. There was a time when I really wished that but somehow he always found a way to worm himself back to my heart. Right now the thought of him dying scared the hell out of me, and also the idea that he thought that I value his life and friendship this little.

"You know you are my friend, and I don't…" I started to prove him wrong but he interrupted me again.

"You would want me dead if that would mean Stefan's life."

I gaped at him. I really didn't know how to answer to this. I never gave a thought about it because I never had to make that kind of decision. I loved Stefan, I really did, but I cared about Damon very much. Maybe too much. How would you choose between losing an arm or a leg, because both of them were that important for me.

He took my silence as an answer as I saw him mouth 'Right' just before he turned to leave. I tried to stop him, but I couldn't find the right words to say, so I just watch him walk out of the room. He was at the arch of the hall when he stopped.

"Would you promise something for me?" he asked and only turned back when I said yes.

I swear I could see a single tear in his eyes so not like him and so beautiful that I wanted to run to him, hug him and tell him I would promise and do anything just so I would never have to see him so crushed again.

"If you ever have to make that choice, you will stake me, before you break my heart," he said simply and held my gaze waiting for my answer.

I started to cry. I knew he was serious. I knew that it wasn't just an empty phrase he really wanted my word. I couldn't agree on that. I shook my head but he run back at me with vampire speed and only stopped just an inch before me. Our bodies almost touched he grabbed my arm on both sides so much it hurt.

"Promise!" he begged me with his eyes. If he would be able to compel me I was sure he would have made me say those words.

I nodded with between two sobs, because frankly I didn't know what other option I had. He looked at me for a very long minute in which I have tried to phrase a hundred different things I wanted to say to him but I failed to tell him any of those. Because when I blinked to empty my tear filled eyes he disappeared.

I collapsed onto the sofa unable to stop the crying. I always knew that Damon loved me. He never said it out loud, but I knew, like probably everyone else in this town. But I never thought that his love was this deep. My guess was, that it originated in male pride, a consequence of that he couldn't have me and his little brother could. Or maybe he projected his love for Katherine on me. Or simply because it would bug Stefan. Not for a second it occurred to me that his love was genuine and how much I hurt him every time I used his affection to reach my goal. Now I could understand his pain for always coming second after his brother who got everything.

Speaking of whom… he chose that moment to enter the house. He smiled when he saw me on the sofa but his expression became concerned when I turned around. He must saw my blood shot eyes and tear-streaked face.

"What's wrong?" he asked as he hurried towards me.

"Where were you?" I questioned him with more frustration that he deserved. I couldn't help but think that none of this would have happened if he would have been here. I could live my probably not so long life the way I used to, ignorant to Damon's feelings. But that wasn't a possibility any more.

"I was out hunting. We ran out of blood," he explained. "What happened to you?"

He sat down beside me and pulled me into a hug.

"Can we not talk about it?" I asked in a weak attempt to pretend like everything was the same.

"Of course," he said to me stroking my hair and I know that nothing would be the same again.


	2. The choice

_**Author's note: **_

_**So much about the suspense, I'm posting the second chapter right away. That's because I'm so eager to know your opinion. So please review if you like it! If you don't I'm assuming you don't like it. Don't do this to me!**_

We were unsuspecting and uncoordinated when Klaus arrived. Bonnie may knew how to kill him without a weapon, but that needed a lot of planning and preparation. We were in the middle of research when the Originals came. With all of us gathered in the living room of the boarding house we made an easy prey for them. All I could remember that Damon and Stefan both stood before me to stop them from get me, but a big bulky vampire tossed them aside like puppets and grabbed me. Bonnie tried to get Damon on his feet again but he collapsed back. Then there was a blackout.

When I woke up I found myself in a clearing at the woods. The grass was burned and smelled from blood. It was the witch massacre side. Bonnie said that Klaus would probably place the ritual there so his witch could use the power of the dead. She was right. Dozens of torches circled me and their smoke clouded the night sky. A body of a woman laid before me just a few feet away. When I crawled there to check if she was okay I recognized her as Jules. She was dead. I let out a cry not really because of the grief I felt for the werewolf but because that meant that Klaus had already started the ritual. When my scream faded I could even hear the muffled chanting coming from somewhere before me. The witch was also here.

I looked around trying to find an escape when the wall of smoke divided in front of me and a young and blonde man came through. He was wearing a white suit and an arrogant smile of power and victory. Klaus.

"Ms. Gilbert, it is a pleasure to finally meet you," he said demurely with an unknown accent. He might speak languages the world doesn't even remember.

"Where are my friends?" I demanded looking into his eyes without fear.

"You mean those gentlemen?" he asked pointing behind my back.

I turned around quickly just to spot Damon and Stefan lying on the burned ground lifelessly. I ran and fell onto my knees beside their bodies. To my utmost surprise and greatest relieve they were alive. Barely, but alive.

"Let them go!" I ordered the oldest living vampire in the history of time. "You don't need them."

"As a matter of fact I do," he said folding his arms behind his back. "You see I really do have one vampire, but I have different plans for her."

The fog rarefied at a spot and I could see Katherine tied up and guarded by two Originals. She seemed more frightened than anyone I ever seen.

"Brother, would you wake up the two Mr. Salvatores?" he ordered one of his man, waving frilly.

A vampire stepped beside the brothers and put a phial out of his inner pocket of his suit. He poured a little dark red liquor into their mouth and Damon and Stefan both sat up coughing immediately searching for me and bolting towards me when they saw me just a feet away from our arch nemesis. Klaus appeared in front of me, his movement wasn't even visible. He grabbed the two men by their throats and for a crucifying second I thought that he would break their necks. Instead he put them down and spoke to them in a low voice.

"You will not move from this spot until I say so."

He then turned back to me with a joyful smile leaving Damon and Stefan there compelled.

"Now, as I said I am in need of a vampire, but it seems like we have redundancy," he said and I was sicken by the way he talked about my beloved, like they were only fat stock. "I feel like I am in debt of these fine man for looking out for you so well, so just to show my appreciation I let one of them leave unharmed. I will let you choose."

Damon and I rapidly looked at each other. When he made me promise that I will kill him rather than choose Stefan over him, none of us really thought that this moment would ever come. Yet here we were in that exact situation. Klaus circled us with a cordial expression which showed that he though he had shown goodwill by letting me spare one of the Salvatore brothers. On the contrary it was. He made me face my doom.

So here we were, at the endgame. Klaus, who really was that monster who we all expected, stood before me, waiting for me to answer his question.

The two Salvatore brothers were just a step before me, compelled not to move. I turned around taking my eyes from the oldest living vampire who wanted me to make the hardest decision of my life. I looked at Stefan first. He stared into my eyes directly, so sure of my answer. I could tell, that he struggled; he knew what my choice would do to the other, and he was already sorry for his brother. My eyes moved to Damon. Poor, wrecked and torn Damon. He wasn't meeting my gaze. I couldn't see those beautiful eyes and that handsome face, because he turned down his head waiting for the verdict.

"All right Ms. Gilbert, I gave you enough time. Please, announce your candidate now!" ordered Klaus in the same aristocratic manner as Elijah used to speak.

I had the name in my mind, but I knew that it would break a heart if I say it out loud, so I hesitated. I knew I could save only one of them. Klaus made it clear that he only needed one vampire for the ritual, so one could leave free. He made it my duty to pick which one of them will live, and who will die with me.

It was time for my declaration.

I stepped in front of Damon who was still unwilling to look at me. I lifted his chin to force him to see me in the eye.

"I'm so sorry Damon," I started. He gazed at me expressionless, I knew he put up his walls hiding his emotions, but I could tell that my words haven't surprised him. "I'm so sorry," I repeated and my voice cracked.

"No biggie," he said in a resigned voice. "Although, I would like to remind you of a certain promise."

"I haven't forgotten," I continued. "But this is not the situation that calls it."

I saw his walls of negligence crumble and I could see the confusion in his eyes. I took both his hands in mine before I went on.

"I'm so sorry for all the times I hurt you. I'm sorry that I never appreciated your love, but to my excuse, I never realized it was real until a couple of days ago."

I let go of his right hand just to be able to touch his face. He didn't even blink just stared at me with wide eyes unable to believe what was happening. I stroked his cheek and smiled at him ensuring him that I was sincere.

"You are a good man Damon. I know you try to hide it and deny it every way you can, but I know that you are. I know, because I couldn't love a man that you try to give yourself off to, however I love you."

He flinched when I said those last words. That was the only movement he made since I started speaking, as if fearing that if he would stop me even with the slightest blink, I would stop my confession.

"I know you made terrible mistakes but I think its time for someone to forgive you. I do forgive you now. You are free to go."

I let his other hand fall too and cupped his face. I looked into his eyes, pleading not to make anything stupid and just leave. The idea of him dying because of me was unbearable. Shocked stares burned a hole into my back. I couldn't even think about what Stefan must feel at my treachery because my one and only thought was to get Damon out of here now. I didn't know when my emotions changed towards him, but I was sure it wasn't the night he made me do that promise, they just surfaced after that. That night brought the realization that I had been in love with him for a long time.

He just stared at me with those beautiful eyes dumbstruck, speechless for moments.

"Please don't save me out of pity," he asked when he was able to speak again. "If you make me that pathetic I would be forced to wear a hoodie."

I grimaced reprehensively at his improper joke.

"I save you because I think you are worth saving," I said and my words washed the annoyed little smile from his face just to make place for a more serious glare. The one of overwhelming emotion and adoration.

"Thank you," he whispered to me.

I smiled at him a second before I leaned into to give a soft kiss on his lips. It was just a little peck on the lips, he didn't even kissed me back, but anything more heated would have been very indecent given that my boyfriend was also present. I looked into his eyes again when I drew back.

"That was indeed very touching," I heard Klaus's mushy voice ruin our moment, "but we must proceed. Mr. Salvatore would you be so kind and leave the place."

Damon took a few steps backward. My hand slipped from his cheeks trailed along his outstretched arms and fall back to my side when he was out of my reach. I expected him to be sad because of my death, or joyous because of his escape, but I certainly didn't expect to see that mischievous smile on his lips. It was my turn to gape and look around in confusion.

"I have one last thing to say," he said, the impish grin not leaving his face.

Klaus huffed in irritation but signaled him to go on. I guess if he would have expected any of those what followed he wouldn't be so gracious.

Damon's eyes suddenly changed. It was like when he turned, but the veins weren't black this time but sparkling white. His pupil also disappeared and his whole eyes glowed with white light.

Klaus screamed like a banshee when he understood what happened. He jumped with super speed to stop Damon but he was faster this time. The clashed his fists to the ground and the dazzling light from his veins spread in to the soil like hyper –speed tentacles. Klaus was blown back by the force they emitted.

"Rise!" Damon shouted on a voice much deeper than his own.

The glowing tentacles buried themselves into the ground and moments later hundreds of spirits emerged from the ground. All the witches from the massacre. They floated at one place, their hollow eyes staring into nothing.

"I told you to check them for witches!" whimpered the big bad Klaus to one of his man.

"But he's a vampire!" protested the scared henchman.

"Crazy-ass vamp warlock you wanted to say!" laughed victoriously Damon while straightening from the ground. His eyes weren't white anymore, but his veins still glowed a little. He looked at Klaus and the smile faded. Even I was a little afraid from the hatred in his eyes.

"Last words?" he spit at our nemesis. Klaus opened his mouth to say something but Damon cut him off. "You know what, I don't care. Ladies!"

All the creepy, translucent witches elevated their heads at once. He pointed at Klaus and the spirits attacked him with untraceable speed. The vampire screamed every time a ghost slipped through him and he seemed to lose little bits of him with each assault. I could have just close my eyes but I wanted to be sure it was the end of him. The witches finished him off in a mere thirty seconds. He was gone completely, there was no sign of a body, not even ash, or bones.

Bonnie appeared through the smoke. She looked around checking to see if all of us were fine. She stepped next to Damon questioning him about how it had gone.

"Wow, that was firkin' awesome," he concluded the events, happy like a little boy.

"I want it back," she reminded him, then grabbed his wrist. We all felt a little wind and Bonnie got back her powers. It all got clear to me at that very moment. The last image I saw before everything went black at the boarding house that Bonnie was trying to help Damon up. Or so I thought. It was Bonnie giving Damon all her powers because they knew the originals won't check Damon for witch powers as a vampire warlock was unheard of. They also knew that Klaus will want Damon on the site of the ritual, which would be the site of the massacre too, where Damon could raise all the dead witches to kill Klaus, a method Jonas told Bonnie just before his death. I awed at the brilliance and simplicity of this plan and was pissed at the same time because nobody told me about it.

I was about the protest that our agreement was about doing everything my way but my body decided to shut down from the built up stress and tiredness in that exact moment. Everything went black again.

I woke up in my room the next day. Jeremy sat on the side of my bed. He seemed very relieved that I opened my eyes and hugged me instantly.

"You okay?" he murmured into my hair. I nodded, because I felt okay for the first time since ever.

"Everybody's downstairs. They would all like to see you awaken," he announced and unfolded himself from my embrace. "Oh, and this is for you."

He gave me a little envelope before he left. It was sealed with red wax impressed with the Salvatore crest. I tore it open and found a single piece of paper in it.

_Elena,_

_I want you to know that I forgive you. I always knew that you would be his redemption._

_Love,_

_Stefan_

I put the goodbye letter from my former boyfriend back to the envelope, than slipped that into my drawer. I turned back just to find Damon on the side of my bed.

I shrieked from the surprise.

"You really should stop this sneaking, it scares the hell out of me," I lamented. "You could …"

He shut me up with a kiss. Not a modest, peck on the lips kiss we shared in front of everyone as a goodbye, but a heated and passionate one, one that I have always imagined we would share. His kiss were everything I expected. It warmed me up like nothing before. He grabbed my hands and pulled me onto his lap not parting our lips for a second. I was soon out of breath and was in a grave need for air so I pulled out a little, earning a disappointed little groan from him.

"Damon," I started while enjoying his hot breath and tongue on my neck.

"Hmm?"

"Where do we go from here?" I asked not sure how we will go on. It was strange calling Damon Salvatore my boyfriend, but I already felt like her girlfriend. We eased into this like we had been together for ages.

"I know I will go down this wa…"

I slapped him playfully and tried to get out of his embrace.

"Damon, a whole bunch of people waits for me downstairs," I protested when he wouldn't let me go.

"Let them wait. I have been waiting for you to be mine for an eternity."

He kissed me again and I couldn't help but give in, only parting him to say:

"I'm yours now."


End file.
